“When it all comes down to it, when I’m going through something I can’t handle on my own she’s the first person I call,” Gilbert told Taste of Country during a recent interview. Asked if he’d consider himself a mama’s boy, he responded, “A little bit, yes sir.”

Gilbert, who recorded the track ‘Indiana’s Angel’ about his mother for his ‘Modern Day Prodigal Son’ album, has come to understand some of the sacrifices she made — and grown into someone she can depend on, too.

“You know she moved out of Indiana, moved down here with my dad, didn’t really have any friends, made some friends and just pretty much … My dad and her got divorced recently,” said Gilbert. “And she’s been pretty strong through the whole thing. I’ve kind of been there for her. The roles have kind of switched a little bit.”

Gilbert is currently building a new home on a 12-acre plot — and yes, it’s close to his mother’s house, which will come in handy while he’s on the road as part of this year’s Taste of Country Christmas Tour and needs a dogsitter for his pet pit bull.